Game of Dog Bones

by Laurien Berenson

  “Your lawsuit,” I repeated. Would everything this man said come as a surprise?

  “Yeah, I figured that was why you wanted to talk to me. I’m putting together a lawsuit against Victor Durbin.” He frowned. “Now I suppose I’ll have to sue his estate instead.”

  “I heard that the two of you had had a dispute over stud fees?”

  “Stud fees.” Larry snorted smoke out through his nose. “That’s rich.”

  I leaned back in my seat. It was beginning to look as though I was going to be here a while. “It wasn’t about stud fees?”

  “I guess it started that way. But that was a while ago. Victor needed a steady supply of puppies for his café. You know, the Pooch Pub?”

  “I’ve heard of the place,” I said. “But I’ve never been there.”

  “You should visit sometime. It’s a fun spot. Great selection of coffees, decent food. But of course, the puppies are the real draw. Who doesn’t love puppies?”

  Nobody I knew. But that wasn’t the point.

  “So you were supplying puppies for Victor’s café?” I prompted.

  “Some of them. Probably most of them.” Larry sounded proud of himself. “It’s a great setup he has there. You wouldn’t believe how many puppies the pub can move in a month. People come in for a cup of coffee, sit down for a few minutes, and an adorable floppy-eared puppy climbs into their lap. Next thing they know, they’ve fallen in love. Women are the softest touch, but it works with men too. And kids? Don’t even get started about how easy they are.”

  He grinned. “I’ve seen a mother buy a puppy just so her little darling would stop screaming. It blows my mind. Props to Victor for coming up with a crazy good idea. Even if he was an ass.”

  My hands clenched into fists in my lap. Other than that, I remained very still. I hoped my face didn’t betray what I was thinking. Because if it did, Larry would probably leap to his feet and show me to the door.

  The whole idea of puppies being marketed as an impulse purchase made my blood boil. What happened when people who’d bought a dog on a whim got home and realized that their new purchase needed care and training? Not to mention vaccinations and exercise. What if dog ownership was incompatible with their lifestyles?

  There were so many objectionable things about the scenario Larry had described that I didn’t even know where to begin. People like him and Victor were the reason why pounds and rescues were always full. I couldn’t afford to lose my temper just yet, however. First I needed to find out more about Larry’s lawsuit.

  “So your problem with Victor began with a dispute over stud fees,” I said evenly. “Then what happened?”

  “See? Here’s the thing.” Larry leaned forward eagerly. He wanted me on his side. Little did he know that it was already much too late for that. “Victor and I had a deal. Before we even met, I was already breeding Poodles anyway. The market for them is great, especially the little ones. And at Christmastime? Man, they just about fly out the door.”

  I growled under my breath. Larry stopped talking. He tipped his head inquiringly.

  “Sorry,” I said. “Go on. I’m listening.”

  “Victor had this idea that the puppies in the pub would be more in demand if they were sired by his champion Poodles. Kind of a special selling point, you know? I didn’t think it mattered, but since we were both making money who was I to quibble? The deal was, he would supply the stud dogs and I supplied the bitches. Then we’d split the litters between us.” Larry paused to make sure I was paying attention. “In lieu of stud fees, you see?”

  A nod was the best I could manage. I didn’t trust myself to speak.

  “But then Victor decided that my business here was cutting into his potential profits. Rather than selling puppies from two locations, he wanted us to consolidate in one place.”

  “The Pooch Pub,” I gritted out.

  “Right.” Larry leaned over and tapped the long ash at the end of his cigarette into the fireplace. “So Victor came to me with a proposal. All the puppies we produced would go to him. In exchange for the use of my bitches and all the time and effort I was putting into raising the litters until they were old enough to sell, he was supposed to give me an eight percent share in the Pooch Pub’s profits.”

  “You said he was supposed to do that,” I pointed out. “Did it happen?”

  “What do you think?” Larry snapped.

  “I’m guessing no. Is that what your lawsuit is about?”

  “You’d better believe it.” Larry stood up. For a moment I thought he was indicating that our conversation was over, but Larry didn’t even look at me. Instead, he began to pace back and forth across the small room.

  “Victor was a snake,” he said. “Everyone knows that. The only reason he started that Poodle club of his was because he got kicked out of his old club.”

  “Yes,” I replied. “I’m aware of that.”

  “Oh.” He glanced my way. “I guess so, since you’re a member and all. But it just goes to show what kind of man Victor was.”

  “A snake,” I said to help him along.

  “You know it.” He raked his hands through his sparse hair. “A man like Victor, he deserved what happened to him. It doesn’t surprise me that somebody killed him. He deserved to die.”

  Chapter 13

  “Where were you on Tuesday night?” I asked.

  Larry stopped and spun around. “What do you mean?”

  “Did you go to New York for the Westminster Dog Show?”

  “What? A canine beauty pageant? You must be kidding. All those pricey pooches prancing around a ring—why would I want to watch something like that?”

  Apparently it hadn’t occurred to him that I was inquiring whether he’d been in the vicinity when Victor died. Or maybe Larry was brighter than I thought, and his answer was a clever dodge.

  “So you were here at home then?”

  “I didn’t say that.” Larry frowned. “It’s none of your business where I was Tuesday night.”

  “Except that a man you feel deserved to die, did so that night.”

  “I don’t need an alibi,” Larry snapped. “I wasn’t anywhere near that place.”

  “Someone who hated Victor clearly was,” I pointed out. “But don’t worry, you aren’t the only person he treated badly. Tell me more about your lawsuit.”

  Larry sank back into his chair. He lit up another cigarette. The air in the room already reeked. My clothes were going to smell like smoke. And probably my hair too.

  “When you said you had Poodles, I thought that was why you called me. I figured Victor must have stiffed you the same way he stiffed me.”

  “How was your deal with Victor put together?” I asked. “You said it was Victor’s idea. Did the two of you write up a contract?”

  Larry looked chagrinned. He reached up and scrubbed his hand over his eyes. So I was guessing no.

  “What you have to understand is that Victor and I were already doing business together. We had been for several years. So a certain level of trust had already been established.”

  He sounded as though he was rehearsing the words he planned to say in front of a jury. Go ahead, I thought. Try to convince me that you’re not an idiot. I was happy to keep listening. I certainly wasn’t about to point out that, by his own admission, the man he’d trusted was a snake.

  “Victor said the paperwork was coming,” Larry continued. “He told me his lawyer was swamped with work, but eventually there would be a contract for us both to sign. In the meantime, we shook hands on the arrangement.”

  Again—he’d agreed to do a handshake deal with a snake. Actually, I found that imagery rather amusing.

  “How long have you been waiting for a contract?” I asked. “When did your new agreement with Victor begin?”

  “At least eighteen months ago. Maybe longer. Could have been two years.” Larry blew a stream of smoke in my direction. I tried not to flinch.

  “So there should have been profits for you to share by now
.”

  “Damn straight.” Larry popped up again. The man was like a human jack-in-the-box. “That’s what I told Victor.”

  “And what did he say?”

  “He told me I didn’t understand how business worked. That start-ups, especially restaurants, take a long time to begin turning a profit. He said the Pooch Pub was still deep in the hole. Even with how well the puppy sales were doing, everything else was still in the red.”

  Larry was near the fireplace. He banged his fist on the mantelpiece. I jumped slightly in my seat.

  “I let him know that wasn’t the deal I signed up for. We’d agreed I was supposed to get a piece of the gross proceeds, not the net. Do you know what Victor did then?”

  I could guess, but I shook my head anyway.

  “He just laughed. He told me to prove it.”

  “Which you couldn’t do because there’d never been any paperwork.”

  Larry nodded glumly. “That’s when I realized that Victor had duped me. That the whole thing was probably a scam from the start. I had given him thousands of dollars’ worth of puppies to sell in his café, and in return I’d gotten . . . absolutely nothing.”

  “Your pride must have been dented by that,” I said softly.

  “Pride, hell,” Larry snarled. “It was my wallet that took the hit. Those puppies are my livelihood. I have a Web site and a great reputation. I’d built up a good business over the years. The only reason I let Victor get in on it was because he promised he’d make me rich.”

  Larry wasn’t the first person to fall for that promise. It was the oldest scam in the book.

  My thoughts must have shown on my face because he waggled a finger in my direction. “Don’t look at me like that. In my place, you’d have believed Victor too. Why not? He lived in a nice house, he drove a fancy car. You can’t tell me the man didn’t have plenty of money.”

  Larry stubbed out his second cigarette on the bricks beside him. He tossed the used butt into the fireplace. It landed on top of a half-burned log beside several others.

  Now that I’d gotten Larry talking, he didn’t want to stop. “Every time I was in the Pooch Pub the place was doing a booming business. Victor was making a profit, all right. He just didn’t want to share. Big, important man that he was, he figured he didn’t have to. Victor was sure I wouldn’t be able to make him live up to his word. Well, I showed him!”

  The vehement declaration made me stiffen in my seat. Suddenly it seemed like a prudent time to stand up. And maybe to head toward the door.

  Abruptly Larry seemed to realize what he’d said. “I was talking about the lawsuit,” he added.

  “I know that.” Hopefully, my prevaricating skills were improving.

  “No, really.”

  I’d reached the hallway. Three quick steps brought Larry to my side. Then he went right past. He strode to the front door and opened it. A gust of fresh air blew inside. After the tight, smoky quarters in the house, it smelled heavenly. I couldn’t wait to be outside.

  “I believe you,” I said.

  “You don’t have to believe me. Talk to Manny Garza. He’ll tell you.”

  I paused on the doorstep. Once again, I could hear Larry’s dogs yapping. The noise made me want to cover my ears. Instead I said, “Who’s Manny Garza?”

  “Another dog breeder. He has Schnauzers and Cockers. You know, for Schnoodles and Cockapoos?”

  Unfortunately, I did know.

  “Manny had the same deal with Victor that I did. And he got screwed too. He’s not any happier about it than I am. He’s in Katonah. Hang on a second, I’ll give you his phone number.”

  Larry found a piece of paper and scribbled down the contact information. When he handed it over, he said, “It wasn’t just me. Victor made trouble for a lot of people. Talk to the members of the Empire Poodle Club. Any one of them will tell you the same thing.”

  I was itching to leave, but I couldn’t go just yet. “Who should I start with?”

  “A woman named Hannah Bly. She always has plenty to say. Maybe you already know her. I think she used to belong to that other Poodle club.”

  Not only was Hannah once a member of the Paugussett Club, she’d also been the steward at the Poodle specialty the previous Sunday. I wondered what her beef with Victor had been.

  “Good luck with your lawsuit,” I said.

  “I don’t need luck,” Larry told me. “I’m the one who’s right.”

  I suspected his Poodles would have disagreed with him about that.

  * * *

  “You’re going back out again now?” Sam said when I got home. Earlier I’d stopped by briefly to drop off Faith and Kevin. Now I was picking Faith up—and leaving once more.

  Hannah Bly lived in New Canaan. I’d called her from the car, and she’d told me she was on her way to Waveny Park to take her daily two-mile hike. When she’d invited me to join her, I’d said I could be there in twenty minutes.

  “Sorry about that.” I tried to sound sincere. We both knew I wasn’t really.

  While I was busy running around, Sam was pulling double duty on the parent front. I would definitely owe him for that. But I was also sure that he’d find a way to collect.

  Sam went into the closet and pulled out my warm parka. As I exchanged it for the wool peacoat I was wearing, he plopped a knitted cap on my head. Then I kicked off my sneakers and yanked on a pair of warm, waterproof boots. I stuffed a pair of gloves in my pocket and I was good to go.

  “It’ll be dark in two hours,” Sam pointed out.

  “I know. And I’m sure Hannah does too. There’ll be plenty of time to walk two miles before sunset.” At least I hoped there would.

  The walking trails at Waveny Park were wide and plentiful. But the woods they crisscrossed were heavily treed, and dark with shadows. The trails were much more inviting on a sunny summer day than a wintry afternoon. On the other hand, we would probably be the only people out there. That meant I’d be able to let Faith run loose, and that Hannah and I would have plenty of privacy to talk.

  Sam glanced down at the big Poodle. “You’ll take care of her, right?”

  She wagged her tail in reply. Faith always took care of me, and we all knew it.

  “Don’t leave your cell phone in the car,” Sam told me. He knew I was likely to do exactly that.

  “Seriously?” I peered at him from beneath the brim of the cap he’d pulled low over my forehead. “I won’t need to call for help. I’m going to New Canaan, not Siberia.”

  “You might fall into a snowdrift.”

  I smirked. “They clear those paths, you know.”

  “When in your life have you ever stayed on the narrow path?”

  Good point.

  I stood up on my toes and brushed a quick kiss across his lips. “I’ll be home in a couple of hours. Don’t worry.”

  “Right,” he said. “Like that’s going to happen.”

  Faith was delighted to get back in the car with me. She was even more delighted when we pulled into the small parking lot near the Waveny Carriage House and I saw that Hannah had brought along a Standard Poodle of her own.

  “That’s Izzy,” Hannah told me as Faith hopped out of the Volvo and she and the white Standard checked each other out.

  “Mine’s Faith,” I replied. “She loves everybody.”

  Hannah laughed. “So does Izzy. I’m sure they’ll get along fine.” She was holding a leash in her hand but it wasn’t attached to Izzy’s collar. I grabbed Faith’s lead and my phone and shoved them both in my pocket.

  “I’m glad to see you came prepared to move along.” Hannah glanced down at my sturdy boots as we walked toward the trailhead. The two big Poodles were already running on ahead of us. “I’ve had friends who want to come out here and walk with me—and then it turns out their idea of walking is barely more than a stroll. I hike for exercise, so I like to get my blood pumping. You okay with that?”

  “More than okay,” I said. “I’ll love it. Lead on.”

 
Hannah was in her early forties, probably a couple of years older than me, but she was in great shape. She had on well-worn hiking boots, a lightweight parka, and no cap. It looked like she was serious about working up a sweat. I hoped I wouldn’t have trouble keeping up.

  We spent the first few minutes finding a rhythm that suited both our strides, and watching the Poodles to make sure they were staying out of trouble. Aside from our two cars, the parking lot had been empty. The wide path was deserted too. Faith and Izzy were able to race around and romp freely. They were having a great time exploring the woods.

  The air was crisp and cold, and the packed snow crunched beneath our feet. Connecticut winters are long, and I’ve been known to let myself get lazy. Now it felt great to be outdoors doing something energetic. I wondered why I didn’t make the effort more often.

  I was enjoying myself so much that I almost forgot there was another reason why I’d come. Then Hannah turned to me and said, “Your call came as a surprise. How long has it been since we last spoke? Two years maybe?”

  “Probably about that.”

  That was when Hannah had left PPC and joined the Empire Poodle Club. In the intervening time, she and I had crossed paths at various dog shows. Our relationship was cordial, but definitely more distant than it had been before she’d made the switch. Victor had had that effect on people—he made them choose sides.

  “I saw you at the specialty on Sunday,” I said.

  Her gaze tipped my way. “But you didn’t come over and say hello.”

  “You were busy.” That excuse sounded pretty lame. “And besides, it was Victor’s show.”

  “I figured that had to be what your call was about. You want to talk about Victor, right?”

  I nodded. “Were you at Westminster on Tuesday night?”

  “Sure, I was there.” Hannah grinned. “Along with ten thousand other people. Everybody who’s anybody in dogs was there. You know that.”

  Except me. I spared myself a moment for self-pity, then moved on. “Did you see Victor that evening?”

  “Nope. Like I said, it was a full house. There were people everywhere. And it’s not as though I was looking for him. Or even giving him a second thought.”